Juicing Our Way to a Happy Flock

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Against my better judgement, I’ve been suckered into the cliche “diet” resolution…among others. Well, maybe not dieting per say, but at least trying to be healthier.

We bought a juicer…I know, I know, but it all happened so fast. I felt my internal thumb raise, like an eager hitchhiker, as the bandwagon drove by, and with leaps and bounds I jumped on. Lord help us! Another kitchen gadget!

Like good little juicers, bright eyed and bushy tailed, we scurried to the grocery store and filled our cart with a multitude of veggies; kale, spinach, apples for sweetness, carrots, beets. I beamed with pride as the healthy items made their way along the conveyer belt at the checkout. We also bought a bag of Chia seeds for good measure. I mean, if your going to get healthy…go big right?

Last night we consumed/juiced more fruits and vegetables than we have since the garden was in full swing. The holiday season is always ridiculously carb laden, gravy soaked, and packed with enough sugar to keep the National Diabetes Foundation going for the next ten years. So maybe this will be a nice way to boost our systems after the holiday binge.

As an added treat, the outdoor family is also getting a boost via the pulp that the juicer leaves behind. In these cold, dreary, lifeless months ahead, I’m excited to be able to bring containers of healthy vegetable and fruit matter out to the chickens. We hardly ever eat kale or fresh beets, so its a great way to introduce a variety of healthy food both for ourselves and for the chickens.

They were weary at first, but soon found the colorful mash of fresh ground veggies to their liking.

In some strange way, giving the pulp to the chickens truly is an added bonus to use the juicer. Our animals, many times eat better than we do. We’ll spend $50 on a a bag of organic dog food and run through McDonald’s on the way home to save money. I started a walking program a couple years ago, not because it’s healthy for me, but because the vet said the dog needed to loose some weight. The health of our animals drives me. And perhaps the chickens will be my inspiration.

Much of the driving force behind raising our own animals is to change the way we eat. To simplify food and incorporate more whole foods. To eat eggs from chickens that have seen the light of day. Who eat grass and bugs, and now…who eat fresh kale and spinach pulp in the dead of winter. It all has to circle back into something good. I truly believe that.

So will 2013 be the magic year? The healthy year where we find the secret to eternal youth, and juice our way to svelte, chiseled magnificence? I doubt it, but every little bit helps.

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13 Comments

your sorry is very inspiring, I would be honored if you picked me! I’ve never won anything before in my life, but I really hope I win! I’m trying to learn as much as possible about chickens. I’m a huge animal lover!! I can completely understand your great love for your chickens! please consider picking me for this contest! I would greatly benefit by this prize! my email address is lynnetted3@gmail.com. I’m trying to read as much as possible before I get my chicks. I have so much to learn! thank you for your story! very touching! please pick me! 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

We do the same thing! We have an Omega juicer and our 10 ladies love to pick through the pulp! They even discovered the grapefruit this morning and nibbled away. I was happy they got their Vitamin C too!

Hi, interesting information….I enjoy veg./fruit juices in the morning but use a Nutribullet which extracts whole foods using the pulp with the juice. I benefit from what you give your chickens….adding extra fibre & nutrients to my diet. While I prepare my drink each morning I keep spinach/lettuce or kale leaves and bruised fruit & cores to give to my chickens….I have also given some ground flax with their regular feed to help them produce omega 3 rich eggs.

We have a juicer that we never use, and based on the benefit our girls could get eating the pulp I’m motivated! It’s funny how like you our animals seem to motivate me, and of course eat better than I. I do have a question, do you cook the beets first? Tonight I dust of the Juicer! For the girl are worth every gulp of nasty healthy I can make!

Our chickens have access to our compost bin where I throw our vegetable and fruit waste. They jump in and peck around but much is not eaten. I assume it is due to the difficulty in finding something they can swallow. Processing this material is a great idea so it is bite sized or smaller.

I love that you are giving your hens the pulp, I have done that for a while, sometimes they turn their beaks up at looking for the meat treats but I usually notice it has gone later in the day.

A trick to eating more of it yourself is to add the vegetable pulp to meatloaf. My partner isn’t too keen on veggies so I add the pulp to ground beef which stretches the meat and is healthier, he doesn’t notice it as much either, add spices for extra zing. I sometimes make shepherds pie the same way and add leftover mashed potato as the topping with cheese and breadcrumbs for a crispy top.

How true that we take good care of our animals and eat unhealthy stuff that isn’t food really. I am enjoying reading your blog. I have 17 chickens and love to watch them run all over our property. Christine